2024 Parish Meeting

BRIAN ARSENAULT

Brian Arsenault was raised Roman Catholic in Massachusetts and moved to Tallahassee in 1998 to attend FSU. In 2015, after 22 years of not attending any church, he joined the St. John’s Choir in search of community. His wife Valerie joined St. John’s that same year, and they were both received into the Episcopal Church in 2016.

At St. John’s, in addition to choir, Brian has been involved as Welcome Committee Chair, Compline Choir member, Evensong Officiant, member of the Discernment Committee for a candidate seeking Holy Orders, Communications Advisory Board member, Parish Profile Committee member, and member of the 2021-22 Rector Search Committee. This Fall he began attending the Education for Ministry program.

Brian is a Faculty Librarian at FSU’s Strozier Library where he is the lead developer for a National Institutes of Health-funded online repository of learning and development research data. Outside of work, he performs on viola and sings with the Tallahassee Bach Parley and other groups in the area. He is also a regular retreatant to the Society of Saint John the Evangelist monastery in Cambridge, Massachusetts.

In his service at St. John’s as well as at the university, he strives, with God’s help, for justice and peace among all people and to respect the dignity of every human being. If chosen for the Vestry, Brian will prayerfully serve this church community that he loves.

LISA ASKINS

Lisa Askins was raised in Winter Park, Florida and moved to Tallahassee in 2010. Lisa was raised a United Methodist until she and her husband, Jeff, decided to move their membership to St. John’s in 2019. Lisa’s home church in Winter Park was much more formal, and with time was beginning to miss the formal liturgy which is part of what brought them to St. John’s as well as the welcoming community.

Lisa serves as the chair of the Angel Food Ministry. She and Jeff are past chairs of the Stewardship Campaign. They both enjoy participating in the SPUDS ministry and various activities within the life of the church.

Lisa’s husband Jeff is a Financial Advisor with Synovus Bank and she has the unique job of being his assistant. Lisa and Jeff both love the St. John’s community and are so grateful to be here. Lisa has always been involved in her local church as well as the church at large, she believes being a member of a church community is the giving of your gifts as well as the giving of your time and talents.

KATHY BYE

Kathy Bye has been a lifelong Episcopalian and has been a member of St. John’s since 1996. She has served on St. John’s vestry and served as senior warden in 2011. In 2016, Kathy served on the leadership team for the most recent capital campaign. She has served as chair of two discernment committees for parishioners seeking to understand and respond to God’s calling to the ministry. She has helped with the wedding committee and served as director for 10 years. She is a regular volunteer in the Lively Café and served on the grant committee for the Market. Kathy is a member of St. Mary’s Circle.

Kathy and her husband, Ray, and two children moved to Tallahassee from Washington, DC in 1995. Before moving to Tallahassee, she worked for the US House of Representatives for 23 years. Once in Tallahassee, she worked for the Florida Legislature and Senator Bob Graham. She retired in 2000. Kathy currently serves on the boards of the Tallahassee Symphony and Capital City Country Club. She has served on the boards of the Institute for Nonprofit Innovation and Excellence (INIE), the Oasis Center for Women & Girls, Refuge House, Oleander Garden Circle, and Leadership Tallahassee.

She and Ray, both retired, love to travel, play golf and visit their two children and five grandchildren, all living in the DC area.

Kathy would be honored to serve on the vestry as St. John’s continues to grow in faith and fellowship. She understands the challenges St. John’s faces in the coming years and is committed to supporting the mission and vision of St. John’s in whatever way she can.

GRADY ENLOW

Having grown up in Orlando, Grady Enlow moved to Tallahassee in 1984 to attend graduate school at FSU. He married June Dollar in 2001 and they attended another church in downtown Tallahassee. After living for some years in Sarasota and Thomasville, GA, they returned to Tallahassee in 2018, began attending St. John’s in 2019, and joined in the summer of 2020.

Grady and June sing in the choir and volunteer in other ways, including June teaching yoga and Grady joining a home group for the Capital Area Justice Ministry. Over the years in other churches, Grady has taught Sunday School, delivered sermons, led retreats, and served in music ministry. Currently, June and Grady also assist with the Coffee and Conversation time following the 10:00 service.

Grady has a B.A. in Biblical Studies, an M.B.A., and a doctorate in education. After 25 years in higher education administration, he now serves as Deputy Director for Administration for the Florida Department of Corrections Office of Health Services.

Grady and June feel welcome and loved at St. John’s and look forward to continuing to contribute to this faith community. Grady would be honored to serve his spiritual family at St. John’s by serving on the Vestry.

JEN GARRETSON

Jen Garretson has been a member of St. John’s since April 2017. She moved from Rome, Georgia where she was confirmed at St. Peter’s Episcopal Church. She was highly involved at St. Peters and knew she wanted to be a part of a similar community in Tallahassee. She would describe her time at St. Johns as a wonderful experience of creating community with her church family and growing in her faith. She has had the pleasure to serve in a plethora of areas at St. John’s, but she most enjoys the New Baby Ministry, Stewardship Committee, Small Groups, and the Usher Ministry.

Jen is an accountant and a lover of all things spreadsheets. She works as a Business Analyst with the Florida Department of Environmental Protection where her love for numbers and the environment collides. Outside of work, Jen loves creating and learning new things! Always jumping at the opportunity to bake something, start a woodworking project, or travel somewhere new. Jen is excited about the possibility of bringing a different perspective to the St. John’s Vestry and would be honored to serve St. John’s in this role.

CHARLES O. HINSON (CHUCK)

Chuck was born in Thomasville, GA, and raised in Tallahassee where he was a lifelong member of Trinty United Methodist Church. In 2017, Chuck and his wife, Jen, began considering other churches and, after attending a wedding at St. John’s, started attending services. They became members in 2020, and Chuck and Jen joined the Episcopal Church in 2021, with Chuck being confirmed and Jen being received at the beautiful outdoor service at Holy Comforter.

Chuck and Jen soon found ways to serve together by hosting Growing In Grace retreats and acting as small group facilitators. Together, Chuck and Jen are members of the Flower Ministry and, bi-weekly, they make PBJ sandwiches for Grace Mission. Chuck serves as an Usher/Greeter for worship services, weddings, and funerals, and is a member of the St. John’s Diggers team which maintains the church cemetery. He also serves as a docent for The Saint John’s Bible and is a member of the Men’s Bible Study group.

Now retired from a career in government relations, Chuck is ready to give more in service to the St. John’s community. He would be honored to serve on the Vestry.

SARA BETH SHIPPEN

Sara Beth Shippen is honored and thrilled to be considered as a candidate for the Vestry. Sara Beth and her husband, Bo, have raised their four children in the church, spending time with several denominations before settling permanently here at St. John’s. Sara Beth enjoyed visiting St. John’s with her grandparents when she was a child and especially loved the candlelit service on Christmas Eve.

The Shippens have been actively participating in St. John’s worship and fellowship for several years and officially joined the church a little over a year ago. At St. John’s, Sara Beth has served in many capacities including being a volunteer with the youth, a cashier in the Cafe, a member of EfM, and co-chair of the 2022 St. John’s Market. Sara Beth is currently serving on the Stewardship Committee, The Saint John’s Bible steering committee, and is a member of St. Mary’s Circle.

Sara Beth has had the privilege of serving her previous church in various capacities. She has formed two prayer groups, been the moderator of her previous church’s women’s organization, led Bible studies, and chaired a Thanksgiving food drive.

Sara Beth looks forward to serving St. John’s for years to come.

KELLY KIBBEY SMITH

Kelly Kibbey Smith came to Tallahassee to attend FSU in 2009 and never left. She and her husband, Ryan, had visited St. John’s through the years but decided to make it their spiritual home when they got engaged in 2019. In 2020, Mother Abi performed not one, but two wedding ceremonies for them! Kelly and Ryan are co-chairs of the Stewardship Committee this year. Kelly has also been active in the Flower Guild, Small Groups, and Children’s Ministry.

Kelly is a board-certified health care attorney. She serves on the Florida Bar Young Lawyers Division Board of Governors and is Chair of the Florida Bar’s Government Advocacy Committee. Her greatest achievement is her almost 2-year-old Lawrence Lee (who many of y’all have heard at the 10 AM service). She and Ryan look forward to building their family at St. John’s. In her spare time, she loves hiking with their dogs and experimental baking.

Kelly was born and raised in an Episcopal Church in Fort Myers. She watched her parents, Keith and Lorna Kibbey (now St. John’s members), contribute their time, talents, and treasures to the church. Keith served on the Vestry and Lorna volunteered for seemingly everything else. The parish merged with another and became the nation’s second Lutheran Episcopal congregation. The parish struggled and without several dedicated parishioners, would not have survived. Being a part of the thriving St. John’s community often feels surreal to the Kibbeys. Kelly would be honored to contribute to St. John’s by serving on the Vestry.

MICHAEL STEWART-MEZA

Michael moved from South Florida to Tallahassee in 2011. Coming from a conservative evangelical tradition, he deeply appreciated the welcoming and loving embrace that the Episcopal tradition and St. John’s offered. He visited St. John’s for several years before finally joining as a member in 2018 and was confirmed in 2019. His husband, Enmanuel, joined St. John’s in 2022. The two of them can usually be easily spotted on Sundays because of their matching outfits. They do this as a way to make others smile and to be a visible testimony to visitors that St. John’s is an inclusive church home for all to worship and serve.

At Sunday morning worship services, Michael enjoys serving as a greeter, usher, and Eucharistic Minister. He loves ending his week by attending the Sunday evening Compline service. He serves as a small-group leader and is a student in St. John’s EfM class.

Outside of St. John’s, Michael works for FSU’s Medical Response Unit providing emergency medical training and mentorship to student-responders. Before working at FSU, he worked as a paramedic. Serving the community as a paramedic allowed Michael to comfort and care for people at the most delicate and difficult times in their lives. In addition to working at FSU, he continues to serve as an adjunct EMS instructor at TCC.

Michael has experienced God’s grace, love, and acceptance at St. John’s. He would be honored to now have the opportunity to serve his church family through the Vestry.

ANDREW WIGGINS

Andrew Wiggins moved to Tallahassee from Jacksonville, in 1998, after graduate school at the University of Florida to begin working in public policy. Raised a Southern Baptist, he was drawn to the grace and community offered by the Episcopal tradition. Andrew and his girlfriend Jenni Henderson, a lifelong St. John’s member found their spiritual home at St. John’s. In 2022, Andrew joined St. John’s and further explored his faith and what it means to be Episcopal, he was confirmed by the Bishop in May 2023.

Andrew enjoys serving as a Small Group leader with the purpose of fully exploring our blessed faith and delving into why we believe what we believe and living our faith out daily.

Andrew is the Political Director for the Florida Chamber of Commerce and has more than 25 years of experience in public policy.

His family has truly found a home at St. John’s, and Andrew would be honored to support a faith community that means so much to him through serving on the Vestry.